


Of Self-Confidence and Cote

by MossadHuntinDog



Series: McGee's Secret Life Series [2]
Category: NCIS, NCIS RPF
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-20
Updated: 2014-05-20
Packaged: 2018-01-24 04:51:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1592300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MossadHuntinDog/pseuds/MossadHuntinDog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Down in L.A., Ziva finally gets to meet her on-screen double, and begins to understand why Tim calls the cast his "second family." But not before some small confidence issues rear their ugly heads first. Established McGiva.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Self-Confidence and Cote

**Author's Note:**

> NCIS, sadly, is not mine.

"Are you sure I will be allowed to watch?" She asked, as she and Tim wandered onto the set of _NCIS_. He chuckled, sticking his hands in his pockets. Ziva had slipped her arm through his, holding tight to his bicep as they walked onto the lot. He sniffed derisively, rolling his eyes.

"I've already told you, Zi, you have the visitor pass, and you're my _guest_ , so everything will be fine. Would you stop worrying?" She sighed, but kept quiet as he led her onto the lot, where the rest of the cast was slowly filtering in. As soon as they stepped onto the set, Tim pulled away from her, making his way towards the others in the cast. After pleasantries were exchanged, he turned back, motioning for Ziva to join him.

"Woah, Sean, since when do you and Cote arrive together?" The Tony-look-a-like asked, eyes quickly roving up Ziva's figure.

"Kind of impossible for Sean and I to arrive together when I am already here, don't you think, Michael?" The older man turned, seeing his costar standing behind him, having just gotten out of costume and makeup. She glanced at Sean, giving him a big smile as she went to him. " _Hola_ , Sean. How are you?" She asked softly, kissing him quickly on the cheek, which he returned.

"I'm good, Cote. You?" She nodded silently, smiling, before her eyes landed on Ziva. She stopped, confused.

"Ah... are... are you... wearing my red top?" Ziva glanced down at her clothing, before looking back at Cote. "I... I have to wear that for the diner scene... how did you..." Tim cleared his throat, taking Ziva's hand.

"Cote, Michael, I want you to meet my fiancée-"

"Ziva." She held out a hand, and Cote raised an eyebrow, glancing at Michael.

"You're named after my character?" She asked, confused. Ziva dropped her hand, turning to Tim. He rolled his eyes, chuckling.

"Carrie, actually. But my siblings call her 'Ziva' because she's... almost _exactly_ like your character, Cotes." He replied, taking Ziva's hand and squeezing, digging his nails into the soft flesh of her palm to get her to relax. She jumped, turning to him. Cote nodded, giving her a small smile.

"It's nice to meet you, Carrie." She said, holding out a hand, which Ziva quickly shook. "And congratulations, Sean's a great guy, you're lucky to have him." Tim rolled his eyes.

"You're only saying that because you're my costar, Cotes." He replied, gently pushing Ziva towards the makeup trailers. Cote grinned, sticking her tongue out playfully. Tim returned the gesture, before following Ziva.

"Why did you not just tell them the truth, Tim?" She asked, as they headed across the set. Tim pulled her close, whispering,

"Because I'm not 'Timothy McGee' here, Ziva. Remember? I'm an actor, I have an entirely different mask to wear when I'm here on set." She sighed, understanding, but not happy about it. By the time Ziva was settled, Tim had joined his costars, and she watched as they waited to start filming; off set, he joked with Cote, and the two often teamed up on Michael. He seemed to truly enjoy the company of the other actors, and she began to see why he had gone into it. The money, sure, but more than that, the chance to play someone else for a while, even if that someone else was himself.

"All right, people, let's get started! We only have a few hours to get the first half shot, so let's go!" Ziva glanced around, watching as the cast members clustered together, checking their makeup or running over lines. Eventually, she settled down to watch as they filmed the episode long into the early evening. At one point, Tim sidled up behind her when he had a moment off screen and wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"So, how are you liking it?" He asked, as she turned to him. She took a deep breath.

"They are all amazing. They have every personality down... pat." She said, slowly, as Tim chuckled, pressing a kiss to her head. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Cote's voice caused them both to turn. Ziva glanced at Tim, who shook his head, nodding back to the scene being filmed. Ziva watched as Cote turned to the actor playing Eli- Ziva hadn't caught his name during the introductions- demanding answers to his visit.

_"'Ziva, I do not walk straight lines. As your Agent Gibbs would say, this is not my first radio."_

_"'Rodeo.'"_ Ziva whispered along with Cote as she watched the conversation she'd had with her father that long ago day play out in front of a filming camera. She turned to look at Tim, no noticing the rest of the scene. He met her gaze, taking her cheek in his hand.

"You okay?" He asked softly. She nodded, sniffling.

* * *

As Tim and Ziva were heading out to go back to their hotel room, Cote caught up to them, her long dark hair free from the restraining ponytail she'd had it in all day. "Hey! Sean! Wait up!" Tim turned to her, holding tight to Ziva's hand.

"What's up, Cotes?" He asked, as the other woman caught her breath.

"What do you say we go get something to eat? I don't know about either of you, but I'm starving and could go for a burger. Wanna come?" Tim glanced at Ziva, who cocked her head at the other woman.

"You are inviting me?" She asked, surprised that her doppelganger would even consider including her costar's fiancée. Cote nodded, zipping up her jacket against the chill.

"Of course. What, you think I want to get Sean alone? Please, I've already done that, and we had fun." Ziva turned to Tim, eyes wide in shock. He rolled his eyes, chuckling as Cote caught the surprise in Ziva's eyes. "Oh relax, it was just paintball, and Sean made it very clear he was unavailable from the start- otherwise, I'd have snatched him up the moment we met." She giggled, but the comment didn't lessen Ziva's anxiety. Before she could reply, Tim nodded, grinning.

"Sounds good. Our usual diner?" He asked, and Cote grinned, reaching up and gently smacking his cheek affectionately, exactly like Ziva did.

"Unless you had another restaurant in mind." She said, moving past them. Ziva watched her go, horrified.

"Are you sure there is nothing between you two?" She demanded, tugging on his hand as he started to follow. He turned to her, sighing. Seeing the distress in her eyes, he took her into his arms, meeting her gaze.

"Zi, I love you. Cote and I, we're the best of friends. Siblings. I promise. Otherwise, I would have asked her to marry me instead of you. Relax, okay?" He kissed her, before pulling away and following. Ziva watched, slowly catching up to him.

"Right. Me instead of her, even when she's flirting with you. Why have the original when you can have the look-a-like?" She asked out loud, catching up to him.

* * *

The diner was small, very few people were inside, and as they slid into a booth, Cote spoke up. "We always come here when we finish filming for the night; this place is low-key, which is why we like it so much. Plus, they have the best burgers around." Ziva nodded as she settled against Tim's side. He pressed a kiss to her head, catching Cote's eye. Ziva noticed the look, brow furrowing. "Oh, Michael and Mark are gonna come- they were just wrapping up a scene; said they'd be here soon."

He chuckled, thinking of the last time Michael and Mark had a scene to wrap up. The director had made them do it thirty-seven times because they kept cracking up on set. He grinned, before folding his hands on the table. "We have that photo shoot on Sunday afternoon, right?" Cote nodded, taking a sip of her ice tea.

"Photo shoot? In the middle of the season?" Ziva asked, glancing at Tim, who nodded.

"It's for a spread in TV Guide. You'll enjoy it. They're always fun to watch."

"They're even more fun to participate in." His costar replied, grinning. A soft chuckle escaped her lips as he leaned over the table, planting a soft kiss to her lips.  

"Should we come back, or were you planning on pulling a _Cruel Intentions_ right there on the table?" Both Tim and Cote turned to glare at Michael, who grinned as he watched his costars settle back in their seats. The other three scooted over, allowing Mark, Michael and Pauley to slide into the booth; without her Gothic costumes, Pauley looked normal, kind of like Abby in her court clothing. Once their orders were taken and their food brought, the other actors turned their attention to Tim's companion.

"So, Carrie, what do you do exactly?" Mark asked, taking a bite of his burger. Ziva thought a moment, glancing at Tim. Could she tell them what she really did? That she had been a former Mossad officer attached to an NCIS team, and had since become a U.S. citizen? No, they'd never believe her. She swallowed; the fry she'd popped into her mouth was salty, and she coughed, grabbing her glass of iced tea and taking a sip, before,

"I..." She took a deep breath. "I work in music." She watched as Tim started, but didn't meet his gaze. "I'm a singer. I write my own music and perform it. Haven't made much money off of it, so I work as a barista most of the time, but..." She shrugged, suddenly realizing how lame her excuse sounded, especially when she was surrounded by famous actors. Cote waved away her embarrassment.

"That sounds wonderful. I love to sing. You know I sang _'Temptation'_ in _Last Man Standing_ when Season six started." Ziva nodded; she remembered watching that episode with Tim, and had been surprised to find that Cote sounded exactly like her.

"I saw the episode. It was... really good." Good? More like a complete and utter _shock_. She fell silent, glancing at Tim, who smiled at her and slid his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close and pressing a kiss to her temple.

"I also sang when I played Maria Cisneros in-"

" _The Jury_ , yeah, I remember that." Tim said, pulling his arm from around Ziva's shoulders and folding his hands on the table. Cote grinned.

"And I remember you in those button-downed shirts and that floppy hair, attempting to sing _'Don't Fence Me In'_ to a _donkey_ in _Harts of the West_." She laughed, reaching across the table and ruffling Tim's short hair. He pulled away laughing. Ziva watched them, confused; she hadn't yet gotten around to watching _Harts of the West_.; she was still catching up on the _JAG_ episodes Tim had been in.

"Hey! What about Mark in _St. Elsewhere_ or Michael in _Dark Angel_ with those glasses-" Cote wrinkled her nose.

"Yeah, but none of them sing to an ass. And neither do Rocky or Lauren in _Chicago Hope_." She added, stopping Tim's protests as he rolled his eyes. " _Harts of the West_ is still my favorite, well, besides _Hocus Pocus_."

"I love that movie." The others turned to Ziva, who had finally found a topic she could contribute to, even though she still felt like an outsider. Michael sniffed derisively, as Cote shot her a big smile.

"It's an overplayed children's movie at best, a cheap gimmicky Halloween movie at worst." He stopped, startled at the glare Cote sent his way.

"I happen to _like Hocus Pocus_ , Michael." She turned to Tim. "Besides, Sean is in it." Tim blushed, and Ziva slid a hand onto his thigh.

"Yeah, for like... ten minutes and three lines at most."

"Don't listen to him, Sean. Michael is just jealous because he was not an actor in Hollywood when he was sixteen." Cote whispered conspiratorially. A soft chuckle escaped Tim's lips.

"Oh, I won't Cotes. But then again, my career is nothing compared to Michael's... four acting jobs, total." The others laughed.

"Hey! I was in an episode of _Charmed_! When Prue was still on it! And she was hot!"

"I hear she was also a colossal bitch." Tim replied, raising an eyebrow. Ziva leaned close, whispering,

"What is _Charmed_?" Tim sighed, as Michael opened his mouth, but Mark beat him to it.

"It's a supernatural show centered around three sisters who are witches, and the daily struggles they faced to keep people from finding out about their powers." Everyone turned to Mark. "What?"

"Whoa, total Gibbs moment." Michael muttered, leaning close to Cote, who nodded. Ziva couldn't hide the smile that tugged at her lips.

* * *

She watched as Tim bid his costars good night; Cote wrapped her arms tight around Tim's neck, and she whispered something in his ear. His green eyes snapped towards Ziva, and he smiled, turning back to Cote as he nodded. Then, he kissed her quickly on the lips before pulling away. As they parted ways, Ziva stuck her hands in her pockets, biting her lip. "Wh... what did she say?"

Tim took her hand, tugging her close. He kissed her deeply, running his teeth gently down her lower lip before speaking. "She told me to hold tight to you, because I've become the luckiest man in the world."

"She... she said that?" Tim nodded, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"Yeah, she did."


End file.
